Companies Survey for the First quarter of 2017—Main Findings

The
Companies Survey for the first quarter of 2017 indicates the continuation of
the relatively rapid rate of growth of the business sector. The weighted net
balance is very positive, to a statistically significant degree, in the overall
business sector (Figure 1 and Table 1). The net balances are also positive to
statistically significant degrees in the manufacturing and services industries.
In the services and trade industries, expectations are for expansion in the
next quarter, and in the manufacturing industry, a decline in domestic demand
is expected. In the hotels, construction, and transport and communication
industries the number of responses is too low to provide statistical
significance to the findings.